This dish sounds too sweet but the fruit and sauce goes so well with the pork. A great dish to impress company with or to just treat yourself to a really good meal.  It reheats well but there usually aren’t any leftovers.

Pork Chops with Apple and Pear
prep time 10 min
cooking time 30 minutes

Ingredients
4 pork chops
salt/pepper to taste
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup liquid for deglazing (cider, broth, water)
1 Apple (Ambrosia was used in this recipe use Granny Smith if desired)
1 Bosc pear
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
3-4 Tbsp butter
1 heaping Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup walnuts chopped

Salt and pepper pork chops and fry for 3-4 minuets per side. (depends on thickness chops should be 145 degrees) Remove from pan and place on serving platter and keep warm. Take liquid and deglaze pan. Add apple and pear that have been halved and then quartered and then four slices from each quarter. Add  spices, butter, sugar and nuts to pan and saute slices for 4-5 minutes. Remove fruit and place on top of chops. Stir sauce for a minute or so longer until thicker then pour over fruit and chops. Serve.

For this recipe I find working with a frozen crust works well and you dont have to pre bake it as you see in so many quiche recipes.I find a great 9″ deep dish frozen pie crust already in a disposable tin for around 90 cents each at a national chain. I can make a very good pie crust for a little less, but a frozen one makes this dish easy to do. Starting with the frozen dough creates a flaky crust. You can make so many variations of this dish. I use many different cheeses and vegetables and meats. Think of your favorite omelet when creating a quiche of your own.

Quiche
prep time 10 min
cooking time 60 minutes

Ingredients
3-4 slices bacon cut into bite sized pieces and fried crisp
1 small onion sliced thin and fried until caramelized
1 cup shredded Swiss cheeses
1 1/2 cups half and half
3 eggs
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 frozen pie crust

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Take fried bacon and place in frozen pie crust. Make sure you have pierced the bottom of the pie crust with a fork 4-5 times. (Do not poke thru the pan). Place cheese on top of bacon. Take half and half and mix with seasonings and eggs. Pour mixture over cheese and bacon in crust. Place in oven for 15 minuets. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let sit for 5-10 minuets before serving.

This week I found I still had some frozen fish fillets in the freezer along with left over tortillas so I made some fish tacos. I really enjoy these even more so than chicken and beef which I usually think of first for tacos. Making your own pico de gallo allows you to adjust the tacos to your own personal taste. At a national chain this week I found a great buy on pork chops and I am starting and ending the week with two different flavors for them. A great roast chicken that I find at 89 cents a pound is back on the menu along with and roasted vegetables of your choice. This time we roast the chicken with some garlic for a nice added flavor. Quiche is great for both breakfast and lunch. It reheats nicely in the microwave. Just don’t over do it. The chicken salad was made with left over celery and dried cranberries from thanksgiving.

SUNDAY
Brunch Quiche, toast w/ jam, orange juice
Dinner Pork Chops w/apple and pear, frozen vegetable, salad greens

MONDAY
Breakfast Cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch egg salad sandwich, carrot sticks
Dinner  Tortilla soup, fresh  or canned fruit

TUESDAY
Breakfast Cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch quiche, fresh or canned fruit
Dinner Roast Chicken w/ garlic, roasted vegetables,

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch Tortilla soup, fruit
Dinner fish tacos, fresh or canned fruit

THURSDAY
Breakfast Breakfast sandwich, orange juice
Lunch  chicken sandwich, carrots
Dinner  mac and cheese , fresh or canned fruit

FRIDAY
Breakfast cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch mac and cheese, fresh or canned fruit
Dinner chicken salad sandwich or served on salad greens  (make a big bowl of popcorn and watch a movie)

SATURDAY
Brunch Breakfast hash, orange juice
Dinner pork chops w/ cream gravy and mashed potatoes, frozen vegetable  , fresh or canned fruit

SHOPPING LIST

whole chicken,pork chops, root vegetables, shredded cheese, canned chili beans, canned tomatoes w/ chilies, carrot sticks, eggs, cereal (hot or cold), frozen vegetable, head of lettuce, tomatoes, elbow macaroni, bread, orange juice, milk, fresh fruit

This recipe is all over the web with major credit to a major mayonnaise manufacturer and a grocery store chain where I found the recipe. I made a few changes but the basic idea is theirs and kudos to them. I can tell you that after serving this to a group of friends you wont have any left overs.

Turkey Left Over Hot Dish
prep time 20 min
cooking time 40 minutes

Ingredients
3-4 cups left over turkey cubed
2 cups left over mashed potatoes
4 cups left over stuffing
1/2 cup cranberry sauce
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded swiss cheese

Take 2 cups of stuffing and place on bottom of oiled 9″ square baking dish. Place cubed turkey on top. Take 1/4 cup mayo and mix with cranberry sauce. Spread over turkey. Take mashed potatoes and remaining mayo along with the shredded cheese and mix together. Spread that over the cranberry sauce. Top with remaining stuffing and place in a 375 degree oven and bake for 40 minutes until bubbling hot. Remove from oven and let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Easy to do and no messy marshmallows. Makes a healthy side dish to any meal. Great for Thanksgiving.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes
prep time 15 min
cooking time 60 minutes

Ingredients
4 sweet potatoes
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup orange juice

Heat oven to 350, bake potatoes for at least one hour. They should be easy to squeeze, soft and tender. Remove from oven and cut in half. With a spoon scrape out the inside of the potatoes into a bowl large enough for mashing. Add butter maple syrup and brown sugar. Mash potatoes to blend.Add orange juice and mash to smooth consistency. Serve.

Everybody who likes tex/mex food likes this recipe. Easy to do and a great dish to feed a crowd. I did not season the meat because the beans, tomatoes and cheese have lots of spicy flavor. Serve this dish with toppings like sour cream,  avocado,  olives etc..

Mexican Lasagna
prep time 30 min
cooking time 30 minutes

Ingredients
18 4 ” corn tortillas
1 15 oz can pinto beans in chili sauce
2  10 oz cans diced tomatoes with chilies
1 lb ground turkey, beef or cubed roasted chicken
salt/ pepper to taste
4 cups mexican blend shredded cheese
olive oil

Heat olive oil in a saute pan and quick fry each tortilla in the hot oil. Set aside. Cook ground turkey and set aside. Empty can of chili beans into pan and mash with a potato masher. Stir to blend. Take off heat. Arrange 6 tortillas in a 9 x 13 baking dish. Spread half of bean mixture over tortillas. Add half of meat on top of beans. Add one can of diced tomatoes with chilies. Add one third of cheese. Arrange 6 tortillas on top and repeat the process. Top off with the last six tortillas and add last third of cheese. Place in a 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes until hot and bubbly. Remove from oven let sit for a few minutes cut and serve. You can add many items to each layer or serve them on the side. Items can include sour cream, salsa, olives etc..

Mashed Potatoes with Carrots
prep time 10 min
cooking time 35 minutes

Ingredients
6-8 whole potatoes
1/4-1/2 bag baby peeled carrots (if you don’t want carrots simply skip them)
2 tsp salt
white pepper to taste
1/2 stick butter
milk or half and half

Wash the outside of the potatoes to remove all dirt. Cut potatoes into cubes and place in large sauce pan. Add carrots, enough water to cover and salt. Bring to a boil, turn down heat to a simmer, cover for 35 minutes or until potatoes and carrots are tender. Drain potatoes and with a potato masher break down the potatoes. Add pepper, butter and liquid . Mash until desired texture. be careful not to over work the potatoes. Serve with gravy or butter.

This is my favorite stuffing (dressing) for a turkey. I have made it for years and get many compliments. When I use orange juice as the liquid I also add a little orange juice to the gravy. It really adds a nice flavor.

Stuffing for Turkey
prep time 30 min
cooking time 30 minutes

Ingredients
1 loaf day old bread
1 onion diced
3 stalks celery diced
Dried sage to taste
salt/ pepper to taste
2 tbsp Olive oil
1/2 stick butter
3-4 whole fresh mushrooms sliced (optional)
1/4 cup dried cranberries (optional)
1 cup liquid (see below)

Slice bread into bite sized cubes. Put on baking sheet in low oven (200 degrees) to dry out. In large sauce pan heat olive oil and melt butter. Saute onion and celery until soft. Add mushrooms and seasoning. Saute for 4-5 minutes add bread cubes and stir. Moisture needs to be added to the dressing and I have used apple juice orange juice or chicken broth. Add 1 cup of liquid to dressing and mix until well blended. Add more liquid if needed. Put in oiled baking dish and bake at 325 degrees for 35 minutes. Serve

With Thanksgiving this week our menu was kept simple and easy. I find a package of wild salmon for under $5 and it covers a number of meals. We have it twice this week on the menu. Once hot and the other meal as a salad. You can broil the salmon for both meals and just serve it on a bed of lettuce for the salad or cook the salmon  on Sunday for both meals and just flake it into the salad on Tuesday. There are a number of hot dishes one can create with leftovers. We will be posting one here this week.

SUNDAY
Brunch fried eggs and bacon, toast w/ jam, orange juice
Dinner Broiled salmon, boiled potatoes with dill, frozen vegetable, fresh or canned fruit

MONDAY
Breakfast Cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch PB&J sandwich, carrot sticks
Dinner  Minestrone soup, fresh  or canned fruit

TUESDAY
Breakfast Cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch Minestrone soup, fresh or canned fruit
Dinner Salmon salad

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch egg salad sandwich, fruit
Dinner baked pasta, salad greens, fresh or canned fruit

THURSDAY
Brunch Quiche, sweet rolls, juice, fresh fruit
Dinner   see our Thanksgiving Dinner for 10

FRIDAY
Breakfast cereal hot or cold, orange juice
Lunch turkey sandwich, fresh or canned fruit
Dinner chili

SATURDAY
Brunch Breakfast hash, orange juice
Dinner left over hot dish, fresh or canned fruit

SHOPPING LIST

frozen salmon fillets, hamburger or ground turkey, cans of whole tomatoes, shredded mozzarella cheese, can of white beans, chili beans, celery, cabbage, carrot sticks, bacon, eggs, cereal (hot or cold), head of lettuce, pasta, bread, orange juice, milk, fresh fruit

The way we were able to make the pie for a great price in our  Under $25 Thanksgiving Dinner for 10 was to substitute canned pumpkin for frozen squash. We found this to be a good decision. We simply liked the flavor better. The notes of the spices worked well with the squash. We also found that the squash was sweeter and that the amount of sugar could be reduced. This is one of our favorite pies.

Better Than Pumpkin Squash Pie
prep time 15 min
cooking time 55 minutes

Ingredients
1 12oz pkg frozen winter squash
3/4 cup sugar (you can cut this back to 1/2 cup)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 eggs
1 can evaporated milk
1  9″ unbaked pie shell deep dish

Put frozen squash in large microwave safe mixing bowl and microwave on high for 3-4 min until soft. Stir and add sugar, salt, spices. Beat in eggs and milk. Pour into unbaked pie shell. Place in a  425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 40-45 minutes, or until knife inserted in the middle of the pie comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Serve after it has cooled off or refrigerate.